1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a shock-absorbing device for a bicycle seat, more particularly to a shock-absorbing device in which the damping force offered thereby can be adjusted so as to suit the user's requirements.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional bicycle seat basically comprises a saddle and a shock-absorbing device. There are two types of shock-absorbing devices which are commonly installed. Referring to FIG. 1, the first type of shock-absorbing device comprises a saddle support (12), which has a front end secured to a bottom side of the saddle (10), and a compression spring (11) which has a lower end secured on the rear end of the saddle support (12) and an upper end secured to the bottom side of the saddle (10). The compression spring (11) serves to damp the vibrations felt when the bicycle is in use.
Referring to FIG. 2, the second type of shock-absorbing device comprises a saddle support (21) secured to the bottom side of the saddle (20). The saddle support (21) has resilient properties, thereby enabling the same to damp the vibrations felt when the bicycle is in use.
Note that in the above-mentioned shock absorbing devices, the damping force offered by the compression spring (11) or by the saddle support (21) cannot be adjusted in order to suit the user's requirements. For example, if the user is relatively light, the force applied on the shock-absorbing device is relatively small. The shock-absorbing device moves within a relatively large range, thereby resulting in a very pronounced movement of the saddle. If the user is relatively heavy, the force applied on the shock-absorbing device is relatively large and may cause deformation of the shock-absorbing device. The shock-absorbing device moves within a very small range, and thus, the shock-absorbing device cannot damp effectively the vibrations felt when the bicycle is in use.